In Truth, The Number Of Friends He Has Is A Matter Up For Debate
by AdanteYuroku
Summary: A series of inter-connecting one-shots that chronicles a typical day in the life of Hachiman as he interacts with the many acquaintances his come to know.
1. Chapter 1

_Chapter One_

 _ **Causing A Scene With Zaimokuza Yoshiteru**_

 _ **Before School, Outside the front gate.**_

"Today this battle shall be won!"

Perhaps it _is_ my fault.

I woke up uncharacteristically early this morning and for whatever reason I couldn't make myself go back to sleep. Having nothing else to do I got up and prepared myself for school in my usual manner. I beat Komachi to the kitchen for the first time in what feels like centuries and actually had to wait for her to make breakfast. Not that I complained. Seeing my sister's adorable tired expression was somewhat of a reward in my book. With that I ate my fill and was on my way. Having left earlier then usual I arrived earlier then usual. The front gate was crowded and I hopped off my trusted bike and starting walking through the dense crowd of students. At the moment, an old acquaintance of mine was making a fool of himself by thrashing around and saying ridiculous things.

At the very least, his a constant reminder of the path I didn't choose. A small glimpse at the me that could have been. When I see how pathetic he is, it makes my more resent wrong choices and regrets not seem so bad. If I could have ended up like _that,_ then I can't be doing so bad now right? But it was early, and I didn't want to deal with him at the moment.

 _Just look at the ground and power on through. My stealth skills will come in handy today!_

"Ahh! Hachiman! My old comrade!"

 _Dammit all._

I quickened my pace and kept looking at my shoes while the wind made a strange noise that _almost_ sounded like someone calling my name. The strange noise followed me and got closer as I made my way past the gate. I suddenly felt several pairs of eyes land on me as well. Having so rarely been the main center of focus in a crowd, I started to get nervous.

"Hachiman! How are you this grand morning?!"

I turned right in the courtyard and walked as fast as I could with out running. The sound of heavy feet clumsily hitting the ground behind me increased. The bike rack was in my sight when the _wind_ picked up again.

"I needed to speak with you at once! I shall be making another request of you and your comrades to review my newest manuscript upon its completion! I suspect it shall be ready in a day or two then- AHHH!"

I heard a loud crash come from behind me followed by a thud. Snapping my head back in surprise I found Zaimokuza lying face down on the ground with an overturned trash can next to me. Someone had apparently also just thrown away a lot of shredded paper, as it was now being blown around the whole courtyard creating something resembling the worst snow globe of all time.

Standing there I waited for him to get up. It was in his nature to overreact to everything and as a result I wasn't sure if he was actually hurt or just playing it up. He gave me an answer when he turned over on his back and reached a hand up to the sky.

"For a warrior like me...to fall this way...how sad..."

 _How dare you make me waste any of my concern on you!_

Clicking my tongue in disgust I turned and started to leave only to discover that a small crowd had grown around us. Well more accurately, around Zaimokuza and the mess he made. Small pieces of laughter could be heard and a few fingers were pointed his way. It suddenly felt like I was in the presence of preschoolers instead of teenagers. The strangest emotion started to bubble in my throat.

I felt angry. I shouldn't really.

He brings all the ridicule and mean spirited things people say upon himself by the way he acts. He has no one to blame but himself...even so, I don't like how all these other people are starting to think their so high and mighty all of a sudden. The whole scene left a bad taste in my mouth. Plus I did technically owe him for his help during the marathon among other things.

"Oi..."

I turn and glare at the people closest to me. A group of first years by the looks of them.

"Can you tell me what's so funny? I'm missing the joke."

Their only response was to exchange worried looks with each other before they dispersed and the rest of the crowd instantly followed suit. With a sigh I looked back down at the pile of delusion lying on the ground. His stance remained unchanged other then the fact that he was obviously playing dead now.

"Get up already."

I reached down and grabbed his out reached hand. With a pull his shoulder was lifted off the ground and thankfully he took over from there and pushed himself the rest of the way up. When he was to his feet he stood next to me and eagerly patted my back.

"My eternal gratitude for your help!"

"Whatever. Just don't go around making a mess. Someone's going to have to clean this all up you know." I explained and motioned to the paper covered ground around us. _Don't touch me so casually either._

"Should I repent by commenting seppuku?"

"That would only add to the mess." I said and started on my way to the bike rack. "Oh and about your new manuscript...if you think you can survive another round of brutal honesty and your dreams being called trash then we're be ready any time."

"It shall be finished post haste!"

He held an overly dramatic pose for a few seconds and then I walked away. I can understand how the idea of living in a world of delusion could be enticing. The only problems you have are the ones you make up and those can disappear as fast as you think them up. It would easy, maybe even fun. But that's just not the kind of place for me.

"The masterful words will flow from my finger tips like the water at Awamate Falls!" his shout echoed and every person within earshot cringed. Bringing my hand to my temple like a certain ice queen I know, I sighed.

 _Just make it better than last time alright_ _?_

 ** _TBC._**

* * *

 **Next:** _"Greeting Yuigahama Yui"_

* * *

 ** _This is a little side project I've been thinking about doing for a while now. I'm still working on the next chapter of "Saves The Day" of course but I'm trying to take my time with that one. With these one-shots I'm just short of going for it. As always I try to keep everyone in character and I appreciate reviews, also hoping to update often. Or at least more often then my other story. Seriously, sorry about that. (-_-)_**


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter Two_

 ** _Greeting Yuigahama Yui_**

 _ **In the classroom, before first period.**_

I barely have time to sit down at my desk before I'm all but assaulted.

"Yahello Hikki! Good morning!"

"Y-yo."

I should be use to this by now. Yuigahama has become bolder and bolder in how often and how openly she talks to me in class. So much so that I've actually heard some of my classmates referee to me as "that Hikki guy" behind my back. The reason being that it was the perfect combination of them not knowing my real name and her shouting the nickname she had given me in between every class. Admittedly it was sort of nice to be a little more recognized by my classmates, though I could do without the glares from some of the guys. _Its not my fault you know!_

"So you're here like super early. That's not like you. Whats up?" she asked cheerfully. How she manages to be so cheery in the morning I'll never know.

"Uhh...no reason. Just sort of happened that way."

"Oh." was her only response though her expression made it painfully clear that she wanted to say more. She awkwardly stood in front of me with her hands behind her back. Not feeling in the mood to deal with her indecisiveness, I took this opportunity to dig what I would need for the up coming class out of my bag. After slowly placing it all on my desk I looked up and she was still there but now visibly annoyed.

"Did you need to tell me something?"

"Well duh!"

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"I was waiting for you."

"Waiting for me to do what?"

She puffed out her cheeks and pouted.

"I don't know! Well...I guess I sort of do." she trailed off and looked away. _This girl, I swear._

Taking a quick glance around I saw that we were indeed getting a few stares. The last thing I needed was for rumors that we were _involved_ to spread. It would make it even worse if they thought we were like that _and_ we were fighting. I leaned in closer and she took the hint by doing the same.

"Wasn't it you that said we should say what we feel so there wouldn't be any misunderstandings?" I basically whisper.

"Y-yeah." she said softly back.

This was a gamble. I don't know if using her own words against her was the right call in this situation, but today I just don't feel like be stagnant. At least not with her and not right now.

"Then tell me what you want."

She seemed to be weighing the options in her mind before she nodded like she was agreeing with herself. Bringing her hand to her chest she looked down at me timidly before taking a breath and speaking.

"When I say 'good morning' to you, I want you to say it back to me."

Letting her words sink in I found myself being a bit confused. I know I've told her good morning before but most of the time I keep my greetings short like I do with everyone. I didn't get where she was coming from.

"But I _did_ greet you."

She opened her mouth instantly like she wanted to retort quickly and loudly but she stopped herself. Instead she took another breath and spoke softly.

"Its not the same. Not for me at least. When you tell someone 'good morning' after you first see them its like saying 'I'm glad to see you' and I know you wouldn't see it as something special but in a way...it kind of is. Its something that...uhhh...people that are close say to each other." she finished and looked away once more.

I knew what she wanted to say in her last sentence but she censored herself for me. _Its something that_ _ **friends**_ _say to each other._ Her true words easily shown through and so I was at an impasse. It really wasn't a big deal, but like so many things the implications behind it could mean a lot. As I mull this over in my head she looks back at me with down cast eyes that clearly told me her thoughts. _I know I'm being selfish, but don't hate me okay?_ This girl really is something else.

"Well...I can't promise I'll do it all the time...but if you want I can try to do it more often."

As I usually do, I open the door to the possibility without fully commenting myself to it. I really shouldn't have any problem with her request, especially considering how much she puts up with me, and yet I can't comment myself fully to it. Something so small and I can't do it. I'm a real-

"That's great! I just want you to try and if you don't like it you don't have to do it. I don't want to force you to do something you aren't comfortable with or anything. Hehe."

Yuigahama's posture was once again upbeat and cheerful as she smiled back down at me. _This girl is_ _ **really**_ _something else._

"Well alright then." I answer.

Seemingly satisfied she bobbed her head up and down a few times before stopping suddenly like she remembered something.

"Before I forget. My mom wants me home early to help her with something so I won't be able to go to the club today. So when you see Yukinon can you tell her that for me?"

"Will do."

With that she nodded once more and turned on her heel to leave. She then looked back at me over her shoulder and raised her left hand in the air.

"I know I'm not exactly doing this right but...good morning Hikki!"

I slowly raised my hand as well.

"Uhhh...good morning."

She smiled then happily skipped over to Hayama's group and easily joined their conversation as if she had been a part of it the whole time. As I watched her I noticed my hand was still up and I practically slammed it down. The maintenance of these supposed basic interaction between people was actually quite taxing.

Pulling a light novel out of my bag I decided I would read until the lesson started. I only got through half a paragraph when the same sensation of people staring at me crept up my spine. Sure enough, when I looked around there were a handful of guys looking at me. Some with what felt like envy and some were clearly angry. But as soon as I stared back they all turned away and pretend to be innocent little school children. _You can all go to hell!_

Having her attention isn't nearly as fun as I'm sure they all think it is. Its really a pain sometimes...but even so...I can't say I don't value our undefinable relationship. I can at least admit that to myself. I just hope that in the end we can still say good morning to each other and it be genuine.

 ** _TBC._**

* * *

 **Next:** _"Making Art With Hayama Hayato"_

* * *

 ** _Thanks for the feedback. :)_**


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter Three_

 ** _Making Art With Hayama Hayoto_**

 _ **In the art room, during second period.**_

I'm not someone who could be called artistic. Not in a drawing or painting way at least. Metaphors and subtlety are not lost on me, but when someone tries to convince me a colorful mosaic of blobs is deep and meaningful, I feel the sudden need to go color blind.

The class itself isn't that bad though. As long you turn in your assignments and make it clear you've at least put some effort into them, then its almost impossible to fail. Through many years of trail and error with art teachers I've found the bare minimum of effort that I must put into my art assignments to pass.

Our assignment today was pretty easy as well. The teacher had drawn a landscape and we were suppose to duplicate it while also doing our own interpretation of it. In other words, we had to draw the same picture but making an exact duplicate would earn us a bad grade. My plan was simple. Add a few more birds and have the branches on the trees appear to be swaying in the wind and I'd be done. If my thought process behind it was brought into question I'd just ramble about how the wind is metaphoric and I should be fine. _Ahh art class, my morning break!_

Not everything was well this morning though. In an effort to "keep the atmosphere interesting" as our teacher had put it, seating was randomly assigned everyday. I wasn't much of a fan of my new neighbor.

"So Hikigaya, what do you plan to do?" Hayama asked me while his pencil moved along the paper in front of him.

For the life of me I can't understand why he would want to make small talk. We've already confessed our hatred of each other. It was just the evil doings of random chance that had use sitting next to eachother so why did he feel the need to say anything?

"Draw something." I answer after contemplating if I should just be silent. I decided to respond on the soul bases that it would be childish other wise. He laughs that same overly polite laugh he does when he doesn't know what to say. I thought he would end it there but for whatever reason he kept going.

"I guessed that much. I meant how will you interpret the drawing?"

"By doing just enough to pass."

"Is that all?"

"Pretty much. What? Are you into this type of thing or something?"

"Not really. I was just curious if you had any grand plan. Didn't want to seem inadequate by comparison." he explained. Dropping his pencil he pushed himself away from the table we were now sharing and stretched his arms over his head. Was he turning it into a contest? How pointless was that? I could care less about this thing. That habit of making everything a contest reminded me of a certain raven haired club president.

"You expect to much of me. I'd have to work to be good at something like this and that's just not my style." I flex my hand to relieve the stiffness growing in it.

"I suppose that's fair to say." he laughed and went back to work. That was Hayama Hayoto for you, he'd make it clear he wants to beat you but then try to be friendly about it. His bad habit of trying to be friends with everyone was annoying to me, and considering some of the topics of our discussions recently, it appeared like it was starting to annoy him to.

The two of us said nothing for a while as we went about creating our sure to be fine works of art. After I shaded a few more spots I looked down at my creation and felt that it was complete. With a sigh of satisfaction I dropped my pencil on the table. _Ten minutes to spare to!_

After stretching my arms over my head I stood up and starting walking towards the front of the room to hand in the assignment. Taking a quick glance at Hayama I saw that he was hunched over and intensely at work. Not thinking much about it I went past him and handed my work in. The teacher had grown accustom to my style of work and with a grimace he placed my drawing into the pile of the other completed works that were to be graded later.

Making my way back I reluctantly returned the overly enthusiastic wave Yuigahama gave me and took my seat. I had a whole ten minutes to do nothing and I was proudly going to spend that time doing just that. Making a pillow of sorts out of my crossed arms I happily laid my head on them and let my mind drift. Or at least I tried to. The swift and irritating scratching noise coming from my left was making it hard to think of nothing.

"Oi, you don't have to be so intense about it." My muffled voice told my classmate.

"Hmm? Oh sorry." was his only reply. The noise softened for a little bit but returned to a quick pace soon after.

Turning my head in his direction I looked at him with one eye and saw a somewhat blank but serious look on his face as he stared daggers at the paper in front of him. I wanted so desperately to spend this small amount of free time in peace but curiosity was taking over my better judgment.

"So what are _you_ making?"

"Got you curious did I?"

 _Go to hell._

"Yeah whatever, so what is it?" I growled and sat up.

"Its almost finished actually." he said and picked it up. His eyes would scan it and then stop on one part before he'd place it back down so he could add a few more strokes to it. This continued until his eyes seemed to have looked at every atom of it before an accomplished look of satisfaction spread over his face.

"Done" with that he picked it up and presented it to me.

On one half it looked like an exact duplicate of the drawing we were suppose to interpret. Almost down to the individual blades of grass on the top of the hills, but on the other, practically nothing was the same. There were no grass on the hills. They were replaced by what looked like an empty and muddy surface. The tree which was lush and beautiful on one side was dead and barren on the other. The sky was darker and full of clouds on the dead side as well. Over all every piece of both sides looked very well done.

"So what do you think?" Hayama asked after letting me gawk at it for a few seconds. I obviously can't tell him that its good but I can at the very least give a complement.

"Nice idea. The whole dual side thing is a bit obvious to do but its a good way to show effort and make it an automatic pass. I wish I had thought of it."

"Oh, is that all?" he said and turned it around to look at it again. "The living side is obviously the better of the two. The dead side does nothing but depress me." he looked it a little longer before looking back at me as if he wanted to hear my reputable. I should probably be vague and say next to nothing, but the words have formed in my head and it would feel like a waste not to use them.

"Its art. Its all suppose to be metaphoric and open to interpretation. What one person or even a group of people think about it shouldn't have to much barring on it. One side can't really be better then the other because its all up to the person viewing it to decide which side is the better of the two for them. One person's good side is probably someone else's bad side. Labeling them is pointless."

After giving my thoughts Hayama closed his eyes and looked like he was relistening to my words over in his head before he opened them again. In his typical way he looked like he wanted to say something serious before he reverted back to his bright and obviously fake smile.

"Yes, I suppose that is one way of looking at it."

Having felt foolish for wasting any energy thinking about it I immediately felt angry at his lack luster response.

"Well its not like it matters anyway. Its all just easily graded busy work. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Always the pessimist huh?" he asked and stood up.

"No, a realist. It just so happens that most of reality sucks."

He laughed a little before turning to walk away. Before he did he looked back over his shoulder at me.

"Oh, and its not going to just be a 'passing' grade. I can guarantee I'll have the best score in the class." he said with a smug look and left.

 _I_ _ **really**_ _hate that guy._

 ** _TBC._**

* * *

 **Next:** _"Wordplay With Kawa-something Saki"_

* * *

 ** _This was my first time writing something of length with Hayama as a focus, hopefully his in character. Anyway, thanks for the reviews. I hope you all continue to enjoy._**


	4. Chapter 4

_Chapter Four_

 ** _Wordplay With Kawa-something Saki_**

 _ **In an empty stair way, before third period.**_

"You'll have to redo this part here, the sentence structure is off." I explain. The girl looking over my shoulder nods which makes her silver ponytail sway back and forth. She slowly extended her hand out and I return the piece of paper she had given me a few moments before. "Other then that you should be fine."

"Alright, I'll see what I can do."

Kawasaki and myself were currently standing next to the stairs that lead to the roof of the school. After art she had rather awkwardly approached me and asked me to look at her Modern Japanese homework, which is something I've found myself doing often as of late. As we normally did, we meet here because of how quite and secluded it was. Neither of us wanted the unnecessary attention of our classmates as I helped her. We had been let out early from the last class so we had about ten minutes or so before we had to get back to the classroom.

It is quiet unlike me to do something like this, but I've found myself not having a problem with it. There was still sometimes an edge to the things so did and said, but unlike a certain underclassmen of mine, Kawasaki was always very thankful for my help. Admittedly it was a bit of an ego boost for her come to me for help as well. _Still never want to be a teacher though!_

"But then how...do I do it?" Kawasaki mumbled to herself and pulled me out of my thoughts. Sitting down on the first step she pulled another piece of paper along with our work book out of her bag and began scribbling away on it. After looking over what she had written she angrily marked it out and gritted her teeth. Through observing her in our little meetings I've noticed that shes the kind of student that doesn't want to be given the answer right away, but she does get easily frustrated.

Taking a seat next to her, I hold my chin in my hands and sigh.

"I can give you an example if you want."

Looking up, her eyes first went to the ticking clock on the near by wall and then to me.

"G-Give me a minute." she told me and held up a hand as if to fend me off.

I nod and her pencil dances along her paper frantically only for the words it creates to be destroyed in the same method they were forged. After said minute was up she pushed the paper topped book in my hands and hung her head in defeat. I found perhaps the last white spot on the paper that was now mostly black and wrote a short sentence. I started to hand it back to her only to notice that she had closed the distance between us. Evidently she wanted to see what I was doing and moved in for a better look. We booth still had plenty of personal space but it was a bit surprising how close we were all of a sudden. I try my best not to react and start to explain what she needed to do. About half way through she cuts me off.

"Wait! I think I've got it." grabbing the book from my knee she puts it in her lap and writes away. She presents it to me when she's done.

"Can't I write it this way and basically be saying the same thing?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"So can't I do it like that?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because that's not how you're suppose to do it for the assignment."

"That's _stupid!"_

"Yes, yes it is."

With an angry glare that would break any man's will, she slammed the pencil down on the paper and shoved it back to me. Taking the pencil into my hand I watched as she crossed her arms and stared daggers at the wall. I wasn't sure how to proceed so after a short pause I started to write another example sentence. The scratching of the pencil became the only sound to join the ticking of the clock.

"I...I'm sorry. I ain't mad at ya. I'm mad at myself." she whispers. There was a sadness to her voice that...unsettled me. She was far from the most cheerful person I knew but to hear her speak like that was strange. I didn't like it.

"It's no big deal..." I offered. "Be mad at language in general. Only humans could make the way we communicate with each other be such a hassle."

Her expression softened and she looked back at me.

"Plus its not like I'm any good at teaching this stuff..." I continued.

"I don't...think you're bad at it..." she whispered but kept looking at her skirt.

"Still...you should probably find someone else to help you. Someone better. Like...Yukinoshita for example." I said timidly.

In truth I'd been thinking about saying it for a while. I know the two girls in question hadn't gotten off on the right foot but things were better now. I can't exactly call them close but there didn't seem to be any sparks flying between them on the few occasions I saw them together. It would be a good fit, I thought. Yukinoshita only wants to give aide to those who are already making an effort to improve and Kawasaki fits perfectly into that category. She tries, no one could deny that. She deserves someone who can actually help her.

"Well..." she started to say. "I kinda...already asked her before..."

My heart sank a little. _Of course I'd be the second option._

"But wait...I can't imagine she turned you down." the disbelief in my voice was clear.

"She didn't. Its just..." she paused, seemingly struggling to find the right words. "I don't _think_ she did it on purpose, but she kind of talked down to me the whole time."

Yes, that was completely understandably. Yukinoshita did have a bad habit of making it seem like you are a complete failure at life if you couldn't understand something right away. The worst part was that she so rarely did it with actual malice. It was just her natural way of going about things. Whoever marries her is in for a life time of being ridiculed and constantly corrected. _The poor bastard._

"I see then..."

I started to think as I sat there and tried to avert my eyes from the slightly flustered girl in front of me. Trying to remember anyone else who excelled in modern Japaneses was difficult considering how little I pay attention to my other classmates.

"So..." Kawasaki said. The strain in her voice was obvious and she started to fidget around uncomfortably. "I guess I'm stuck with ya..."

She looked at me with a slight frown but it felt more like she was angry. It was as if she thought I was trying to get rid of her and she was mad at me for it. _It is kind of true, but its for your own good!_

So as we sat there awkwardly, like we always seemed to do, I couldn't help but think of something. It would be pure arrogance to think we were anything alike. I don't really know her that well but...she is somewhat _similar_ to me, in that she has trouble dealing with other people. For whatever reason however, she seemed to be tolerant of me. Turning her away now wouldn't feel right.

"Well I guess you are..."

My words hung in the air for a few seconds. She looked like she wanted to say something but instead she snapped her head away from me and looked in the opposite direction. Her ponytail gracefully smacking me right in the eyes in the process. Before I could say anything I heard her gasp.

"The time!"

Looking over to the clock I saw her reason to be so panicked and I joined her in that feeling. We had two minutes before class starts. To be more specific it was two minutes before modern Japanese with Hiratsuka-sensei starts. No one on Earth wants to be late to one of Hiratsuka-sensei's classes. It was impossible to predict what would happen to those who were late because she always changed what she did to them, but it was never anything good. Sometimes it was physically taxing and other times it was down right embarrassing. In other words, it was something to be avoided.

Kawasaki scrambled to find her assignment and her eyes dashed across it looking for her mistake. There simply wasn't time for this.

"Give it to me!" I proclaim and take it away from her. Placing it on the book resting on my knee I find the spot in question and correct it. "You tried...so you earned it...or something."

I handed it all back to her and she swiftly stuffed it in her bag. We both stood up together and started to walk away when realization hit us at the same time. To avoid any misunderstandings we never entered the classroom together after our little study sessions. To do this, one of us would leave first and the other would follow a few minutes later. The questions that were presented to us now were, who would leave first and who would risk taking on the wrath of Chiba's most deadly bachelorette? We simultaneously frowned at each other before I groaned.

"Just go!"

Wasting no time she turned on her heel and sped down the hallway. _You're not even going to argue?!_

"Thanks!" she shouted over her shoulder. "And thanks for this!" she continued and patted her school bag.

With only the ticking of the clock to keep me company I stood there and watched her get farther and farther away from me. The possible impending doom might not be so bad. I was use to Hiratsuka-sensei's abuse by now. The only difference this time would be that she would have a little bit of an actual reason to punish me. I just hope my classmate remembers that I did the gentlemanly thing and took a bullet for her.

I anxiously counted the seconds and tried to pretend I didn't see that flash of black when her skirt flew up.

 _Wait, whats her name again?_

 ** _TBC._**

* * *

 **Next:** _"Sweating Profusely With Tobe Kakeru"_

* * *

 ** _The world needs more Kawasaki to make it a better place. Thanks as always for the reviews._**


	5. Chapter 5

_Chapter Five_

 ** _Sweating Profusely With Tobe Kakeru_**

 _ **On the sidewalk outside the school, during fourth period.**_

Winter's fierce grip was slowly slipping away. Spring was starting to take its place and the weather reflected the change of the season. The mornings and nights were still cold but the afternoons weren't, they had become a mix of the two seasons. Not to hot or cold. It was actually quite enjoyable. The perfect weather for someone to spend time alone and enjoy a little bit of nature. At the moment however, I found few things to be joyful about.

Of all the places I thought I'd be when I woke up this morning; sweating, breathing heavily, and draped in the arms of another guy, was not one of them.

"Come on..." I started to say before taking a much needed intake of air. "Aren't you in the soccer club? You're embarrassing yourself."

"That's why I'm so tired! Hayato-kun has been running us ragged all week! We're like freaking slaves man!" Tobe wined back at me. Groaning, I looked away from him. I wanted to get as far away from him as I could, but that's hard to do considering my left leg was currently bound to his right.

We were in gym and the activity chosen by our gym teacher was a three legged race. Which was basically his way of saying _I've run out of ideas but I have to make you do something so...here ya go!_

We use to be allowed to pick our partners for this sort of thing but someone (not going to name names) kept not getting picked. So we were all now randomly paired up and once again the God of random chance struck me down by making my partner Tobe. Our task at the moment was to make it around the school three times with the stipulation being that the pair that finished last had to gather the equipment and store it away. Which honestly wasn't that bad considering all that was needed was to gather the ropes used to bind the teams together and pick up the orange cones used to mark the boundary of the course. _But any unnecessary work is something that needs to be avoid at all cost!_

Our prospects of avoiding that extra work didn't look good at the moment though. We were dead last. Physically I'm perfectly average, and while Tobe pales in comparison to the likes of the superhuman Hayama, his still on the more athletic side. Though he continued to defend his poor effort by reminding me how tired he was.

I was a little winded myself. I was barely able to make it to the last class on time. I had to use one of my one hundred and eight skills to do it. The technique I lovingly call 'the very aggressive walk' saved me. Although my other classmates regularly defy school rules and run through the halls, I know from experience that if I did the same every teacher within a mile radius would be altered and maybe even the police. So by blurring the lines between what is a fast walk and an all out run I was able to avoid Hiratsuka-sensei's wrath.

Something as arbitrary as this wasn't something that needed physical skills however. It was all about the two individuals working together and finding the right rhythm. We just couldn't do it. We could only make it a few steps before one of use tripped and the other would have to frantically grab something to keep us from falling down on the side walk.

"Dammit...I can't even see anyone else..." I mutter.

"Come on Hikitani-kun! Stay positive! We can do this!" Tobe practically yelled in my ear. _Blind optimize will get us nowhere, and 'Hikitani' still? Really?_

I seem to be a collector of names as of late. With most I can tell that the person knows my actual name and is just forcing a nickname onto me, but with Tobe I'm not sure. He may just be that stupid. We kept going and made little progress. I tried to set the pace and he just couldn't match it.

At least no one was around to see this mess. Ebina-san would love it I'm sure, but the girls were inside doing the vault. Which mainly consist of all of them standing in line chatting with each other before taking turns and _attempting_ to make it over the vaulting horse. This while all of us with a Y chromosome had to deal with this ridiculous activity. I know that both sexes have it rough in their own ways but I'm feeling a severe lack of equality at the moment.

If my partner was the president of the tennis club then I could die a happy man though! Totsaka ended up with some guy whose name I can't even remember.

A very defeated sigh came from me as I held onto the chain link fence to my right. I was tired of such depressing thoughts. It was time we just excepted our fate.

"Look, its clear we won't pass anyone. So theirs no reason to exert ourselves. We should just walk from here." I explain as we come to a stop.

"A-Are you sure?" Tobe asked before looking at the empty side walk in front of us. "Well I guess so..."

With that we started out with a slow pace and we actually managed to keep ourselves up right. Against his nature Tobe actually stayed quite and I started to enjoy the nice weather again. The wind was starting to pick up but it helped cool me down. As we rounded a corner however, the silence was broken.

"Sorry."

"What?"

"I'm sorry man. I'm the one screwing up." the depression in his voice was clear.

"I _really_ don't care. Neither should you."

"Still...I'll make this up to you somehow!" he immediately went back to his usual manner of speaking so it was very close to nails on a chalkboard.

"Please don't. Seriously."

He laughed and I would punch him in the face if it wouldn't likely result in us both hitting the ground.

"There you go again."

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know...you're like cool...but like in your own way."

Of all the things I expected Tobe to be, cryptic was not one of them. In fact I doubt he knows the meaning of that word. Still the context of his statement perplexed me. Does he actually think highly of me or something? I have no idea why he would.

On the rare occasions where Tobe managed to occupy my thoughts I always seemed to think of that night in Kyoto. Mostly everyone involved in that event knew what was going on. Or at the very least knew as much as they wanted to know. He was the only one I wasn't sure about. He laughed it off and went with the flow like he has been programmed by society to do, but that told me little of his understanding of the situation. Did he feel indebted to me? Its not like I did anything worth reward. What was he playing at?

"I'm most certainly not cool. Being called cool by you is more like an insult anyway."

He laughed _again_ and this time my hand balled into a fist and I swiftly weighed the options.

"Well...I still think you're a good guy." he said it so seriously that it almost sounded like he was trying to make some kind of joke but failed. He looked away and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand before looking back at me with a stupid smirk on his face. It was like he was posing for a magazine cover. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach.

I instantly thought of a treasure trove of insults to hurl at him but I knew that if I continued to speak he would speak back and I desperately didn't want that. I was somewhat curious about his mental capacity though. It was similar to the curiosity a person feels when they see a whole in the ground and you can't see the bottom. The resounding question of 'how deep is it?' is to tempting to ignore. So naturally you find the nearest rock, chuck it in, and wait for the sound of its impact.

"So is everything going well?"

I'm deliberately vague. Being to direct would defeat the purpose of asking. I don't intend to rip open wounds that have just started to scab over. Nor do I want to be the cause of the collapse of the flimsy bridge I helped erect. If he understands what I mean then that's all the confirmation that I need.

Without missing a beat and with almost no change in his stupidly grinning face, he responses.

"Things can always get better I guess, but its till not to bad. Still fun at least."

That was the end of our conversation. Or at least for me it was. He rambled on about pointless current events to me for a while and I did my best to tune him out. Mercifully, we made it to the finish line and of course we were last. The two of us gathered the ropes from each pair and put them away. Yamato and Ooka mocked Tobe the whole time and their nonsense made me want to give up on life. Totsaka waving at me made me want to live again.

Finally, everyone else went to change and all that was left was for us to gather the cones placed at the corners of the race route.

"Okay! I got it! To make it up to you for use losing I'll go get the cones by myself!" Tobe exclaimed and again posed like he wanted his picture taken. I stared at him blankly.

"I'd still have to wait here for you to get them. There would be no point in just you doing it. I'll go back the way we came and you go the opposite way. We meet in the middle then bring them back here. That's the most efficient way to go about it." Between him and Yuigahama I was getting better and better at explaining things to slow people.

"Y-Yeah I guess you're right." he replied and laughed at his own idiocy. Having enough of his presence I turned and walked away without another word. Soon he would be out of my thoughts again and I would relish in it.

The wind picked up again and carries the sent of the sea. I cursed my bad luck once more and quickened my pace. I wasn't going to chase those damn things around while the wind played with them. As I rounded the corner I took a quick glance over my shoulder and no one was there. _Good boy. Go get them. Its not like I'm going to help you chase down your share!_

Perhaps he isn't _as_ shallow as I had previously thought, but Tobe will forever be a 'nice guy' in his own mind and to all of his peers. In other words I can't stand him, so nothings changed in that regard. I see nothing but a bleak future for him. A future that I will hopefully have as little involvement in as possible.

Picking up the first orange cone from its sideways position on the sidewalk, I bask in the knowledge that lunch is soon and I will have a much deserved rest.

 ** _TBC._**

* * *

 **Next:** _"Working Hard With Isshiki Iroha"_

* * *

 ** _Sorry for the late update. I haven't had much time to just sit down and write. Tobe is also the lest developed of all the characters I want to use so it was a bit of a struggle to make this one, I hope you still enjoyed it. I also finally got around to correcting some of the mistakes in the previous chapters so that's a plus. Thanks for the reviews as always._**


End file.
